Bryce Young eliminated the Arizona Cardinals from the playoffs on Sunday afternoon.
Young led the Carolina Panthers past the Cardinals late for a 36-30 overtime victory at Bank of America Stadium. That, along with the Los Angeles Rams’ 19-9 victory over the New York Jets, officially eliminated the Cardinals from the postseason race. The Cardinals have now missed the playoffs for three consecutive seasons, and have only been there once in the last nine seasons.
The Panthers took a 20-3 lead into the second quarter after Young scored twice in the period. He first broke open for a 23-yard touchdown, and then hit Adam Thielen for an 8-yard touchdown on his next drive.
Although the Cardinals cut the game to just a field goal before halftime with a pair of touchdowns of their own, Young sealed the deal midway through the fourth quarter. He found David Moore and dropped the perfect ball into the corner of the end zone for his third touchdown of the day.
That put Carolina up by two possessions once again, and nearly gave them their fourth win of the season in regulation. However, Kyler Murray ran in a 20-yard score later in the fourth quarter, and then put the Cardinals in position to drill a 58-yard field goal as time expired to force overtime. Chuba Hubbard finally sealed the deal at the end of the extra period with a 21-yard touchdown through two broken tackles, giving Carolina the six-point victory.
It marked their first victory since an overtime victory over the New York Giants in Germany in early November.
Young finished 17 of 26 for 158 yards with two touchdowns for the Panthers. Hubbard had 152 yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries, and Thielen had 43 yards and a touchdown on five receptions. The Panthers have already been eliminated from the postseason. They have not been to the playoffs since the 2017 campaign.
Murray was 20 of 32 for 202 yards with one touchdown and one interception. He also had another 63 rushing yards and a touchdown on eight carries. Conner led the team with 117 rushing yards and a touchdown on 15 carries, and another 49 yards on four receptions. He left the game early with a knee injury.
The Cardinals appeared to be on track to make the playoffs, either winning the NFC West or clinching a wild card berth, earlier this season. However, the team has lost four of its last five games, including two to the Seattle Seahawks, to fall completely out of the division race.
Although the Cardinals showed flashes of a team that could hold their own, Murray couldn’t get the job done down the stretch. They will have to wait until next season for a chance to win what would be their first playoff victory in a full decade.